The Iwo Jima Memorial

937 Words2 Pages

The Iwo Jima Memorial, also known as the U. S. Marine Corps War Memorial, honors the Marines who have died defending the United States since 1775. The Iwo Jima Memorial is located near Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia, just across the Potomac River from Washington, DC.
The 32-foot-high sculpture of the Iwo Jima Memorial was inspired by a Pulitzer Prize winning photograph of one of the most historic battles of World War II. Iwo Jima, a small island located 660 miles south of Tokyo, was the last territory that U.S. troops recaptured from the Japanese during World War II. The Iwo Jima Memorial statue depicts the scene of the flag raising by five Marines and a Navy hospital corpsman that signaled the successful takeover of the island. The capture of Iwo Jima eventually led to the end of the war in 1945.
The figures of the Marines in the Iwo Jima Memorial statue erect a 60-foot bronze flagpole from which a cloth flag flies 24 hours a day. The base of the memorial is made of rough Swedish granite which is inscribed with the names and dates of every principal member of the U. S. Marine Corps. Also engraved are the words "In honor and in memory of the men of the United States Marine Corps who have given their lives to their country since November 10, 1775."

The Korean War Veterans Memorial is located on The National Mall in Washington, DC, in West Potomac Park. It was authorized by Congress on October 28, 1986 and construction began in November 1993. It was dedicated on July 27, 1995, the 42nd anniversary of the armistice that ended the war by Bill Clinton and Kim Young Sam, President of the Republic of Korea, to the men and women who served during the conflict. The Memorial is managed by the U.S. National Park Serv...

... middle of paper ...

... Vietnam Women's Memorial. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial honors members of the U.S. armed forces who served in the Vietnam War. The main part of the memorial was completed in 1982 and is located in Constitution Gardens on the National Mall, just northeast of the Lincoln Memorial. The Memorial is maintained by the U.S. National Park Service, and receives an estimated 3 million visitors each year.
The memorial grew out of a need to heal the nation's wounds as America struggled to reconcile different moral and political points of view. In fact, the memorial was conceived and designed to make no political statement whatsoever about the war. The Memorial is a place where everyone, regardless of opinion, can come together and remember and honor those who served. By doing so, the memorial has paved the way towards reconciliation and healing, a process that continues today.

More about The Iwo Jima Memorial

Open Document